 Image courtesy from Steven O’Banion Steven O’Banion (he/him) is the Director of Conservation at Glenstone Museum, responsible for comprehensively addressing the conservation needs of Glenstone’s collection of modern and contemporary art. After completing pre-program internships at the Museum of Modern Art, the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation Citywide Monuments Conservation Program, and Wilson Conservation, Steven joined the Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation. At Winterthur, he majored in objects conservation with an additional focus in preventive conservation. Steven has completed graduate-level internships with the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Tate, and the Museum of Modern Art. As a Smithsonian Conservation Fellow at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Steven established an artist-interview program for the institution. Steven is a board member of Voices in Contemporary Art (VoCA), a non-profit organization that generates critical dialogue and interdisciplinary programming to address the production, presentation, and preservation of contemporary art.
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FEATURED ALUMNUS:Bob Peck (WPEAC 1976) Elected Member of the American Philosophical Society7/4/2022  Image courtesy of Robert Peck The SOWF congratulates WPEAC alum Bob Peck on his election to the American Philosophical Society (APS)! Robert McCracken Peck is Curator of Art and Artifacts and Senior Fellow at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (now part of Drexel University). His most recent publications have included a photo-essay on traveling the backroads of Iceland in the winter issue of The Explorers Journal, an article on Victorian microscopy in the May-June issue of the magazine Antiques, a profile of artist-explorer Mary Jo McConnell in the July-August issue of that same magazine, and a chapter in a new book about the 18th century explorer-naturalist William Bartram entitled: The Attention of a Traveller: Essays on William Bartram's Travels and Legacy, edited by Kathryn Braund (U of Alabama Press). The APS was founded in 1743 by Benjamin Franklin, John Bartram, and others for the purpose of “promoting useful knowledge.” Today, it sustains this mission by promoting knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and community outreach. Membership of the APS "honors extraordinary accomplishments in all fields." With this high honor, Bob joins fellow past and present members such as George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John James Audubon, Charles Darwin, Thomas Edison, Marie Curie, Albert Einstein, Barbara McClintock, and Neil Armstrong. You can learn more about APS and membership here and contact Bob Peck at [email protected].
On April 20, 2022, the Society was honored to host Jeff Groff, Winterthur's former Estate Historian, who gave a fascinating lecture about the early history of the estate and the beginnings of du Pont's collecting. This talk takes us through Winterthur's transformation into an expansive house filled with historic architecture and collections, complete with a notable American naturalistic garden, a prize-winning herd of dairy cows, and after 1951, an outstanding library on decorative arts and design.
Enjoy! At the end of 2021, you helped us elect two new alumni members to rotate on to the Board of Directors for the Society of Winterthur Fellows. We happily welcome Samantha Dorsey and Neal Hurst to the Board!
Sam is a 2008 Culture grad, and her day job is serving as Director of Programs and Audience Engagement at The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America. Neal is a 2015 Culture grad and works alongside many other Winterthur alums at Colonial Williamsburg where he serves as Associate Curator of Costume and Textiles. Both Sam and Neal will take on the roles of Membership Coordinators for the Society.
Other exciting changes to our Board include Renée Wolcott stepping up as our next Board President! Renée is a 2011 Conservation grad and works as Assistant Conservator for Library and Archival Materials at the American Philosophical Society. Representing only the second Conservation alumnus to serve as Board President since the establishment of SOWF in 1974, we are delighted Renée has taken this role, and she brings a great amount of energy and passion to the position. To complete the powerhouse team, Jackie Killian is now serving as Vice President. Not only are we celebrating this fact, but we also congratulate Jackie on her recent job change. She has returned to Winterthur to serve as Assistant Director of Academic Programs! You can see all the current Board members and their profiles by visiting our Meet the Board page. What has inspired you or given you energy? How has your work changed for the better? We asked, and you answered.
"The pandemic gave us the opportunity to lean into virtual programming in a way that would have been very difficult to make space for during our normal operations. We won't be keeping all the models we tried, but there were programs that were wildly successful in digital space although they had been only modestly so in person, and audiences we could reach digitally that couldn't ever have been with us in person. For a museum in a huge city with legendary traffic issues in a massive state, turns out digital gives us some really unique opportunities."
"Going on 87 and twice jabbed, I read, write and garden, a spendthrift each day. Lucky my class all present and sentient. Go figure." "My work has changed for the better with Zoom and teams meetings! I love the flexibility of being able to work from home while also chatting with colleagues. Exhibition design meetings go much smoother when you can share you screen. You can even have back-to-back meetings without having to run to a different location in between. Plus, no pants!"
"Without sounding cliche, 2020 taught me to listen more and talk less. In this way all aspects (including my work as a conservator) changed for the better." "Believe it or not, Zoom. While too much Zoom is exhausting, I do really appreciate being able to see the faces of my friends and colleagues. I think it makes for more effective meetings and who hasn't had their day made by a Zoom happy hour with friends from across the country?" In 2016, the Society made a gift of $2,500 to Winterthur Museum to transform the Student Lounge into a welcoming space for all current conservation and culture fellows. As you can see from the "before" photo below, the furniture could use updating!
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